I. Con Spirito - Allegro - 00:00 II. Adagio - 10:31 III. Scherzo - Molto Vivace - 24:00 IV. L'istesso tempo - Allegro con spirito - 31:38 Moritz Moszkowski was born in Breslau on 23rd August, 1854, and began his music studies in Dresden, eventually moving to Berlin to continue his education with Kullak and Wüerst. He was an extraordinary pianist who toured extensively throughout Europe. His début in Berlin at the age of nineteen was remarkable, prompting Franz Liszt to write admiringly of him. Frederick Kitchener witnessed one of Moszkowski's recitals in England. He reported that "the playing of Moszkowski was beautiful playing; there was no attempt to astonish... a musician, not an acrobat was at the piano". According to Emil Liebling, "considered as a pianist, Moszkowski is hors de concours... Everything was done musically and with the utmost ease". Highly influential as a teacher, Moszkowski taught at the Kullak Conservatory in Berlin and later in Paris. Many Americans flocked to Europe to study with him and illustrious pianists such as Josef Hofmann were among his pupils. For a figure of such professional stature, his personal life in later years was less fortunate. After an unsuccessful marriage to the pianist Cécile Chaminade's sister, Georgette, he moved to Paris with his two children, a daughter, who died shortly after their arrival in Paris, and a son. Through some unfortunate carelessness Moritz Moszkowski lost the copyrights to his compositions during the wars of 1914, and eventually died from a painful throat illness in near poverty in Paris on 4th March, 1925. Today, Moszkowski is best remembered for a few delightful piano pieces -- the Etudes, Opu, 72, Etineelles (Sparks), Opus 36, No. 6, popularised by Hofmann and Horowitz, and his Spanish Dances, Opus 12, for piano duet. Yet he composed operas, ballets, orchestral suites, songs, concertos, and chamber music, almost all of which remain forgotten. No proper re-assessment of Moszkowski's compositions has taken place nor has anyone written a biography of this once influential teacher, pianist and composer. Most writers on music, indeed, continue to repeat the pejorative term "salon composer" when commenting on his work, an unfortunate state of affairs. Much of Moszkowski's music is written for the piano. These works are generally miniatures, always well-crafted and always very pianistic. His early song cycles show an affinity for the voice and are written in a powerful style that suggests the language of Brahms. The orchestral suites show him to be a brilliant orchestrator, with a strong grasp of polyphony. The operas and ballets show a keen understanding of theatrical music and have been performed allover the world, while the piano and violin concertos are brilliant showpieces, full of delightful melodies. Yet, despite all this musical evidence, Moszkowski is not accorded much attention and is often considered little more than a footnote in musical history.

• published: 24 Mar 2014
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